Will Marks Advances to SVP of Business Development and Digital; Erica Henry is Promoted to VP of Acquisitions, Scheduling & Program Planning; and Frank Vittori Elevated to VP, Post Production
LOS ANGELES, CA: In advance of several key programming initiatives and the expansion of its OTT services, Ovation, America’s only arts network, has promoted several key executives and has added staff to its marketing department. The move comes at a pivotal time in the network’s evolution, as it builds on its linear channel’s success with premium arts-focused drama series like the upcoming season three premiere of Versailles, as well as continued growth and expansion of its live-streaming app Ovation NOW and digital cultural travel network, JOURNY. The announcement was made today by Phil Gilligan, CFO, Ovation.
Overseeing Ovation’s OTT initiatives and strategy is Will Marks, who has been promoted to SVP, Business Development and Digital. He will continue to lead all new business development and partnership opportunities for the network. Marks has been responsible for the launches and ongoing expansion of Ovation NOW and JOURNY, which is the #1 app in the Travel category across the Roku platform[1]. “We love bringing the cultural programming our customers crave across the devices and platforms of their choosing,” said Marks. “Ovation’s JOURNY continues to quickly grow and scale ahead of expectations, and we look forward to announcing new distribution partnerships soon.”
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- Will Marks
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- Erica Henry
The network has also elevated Erica Henry to Vice President, Acquisitions, Scheduling & Program Planning. Henry has been responsible for securing content rights for Ovation’s linear and OTT services from program producers and distributors around the world. Edward Forman has been promoted to Senior Director, Ad Sales. Forman has been a pivotal member of the Ad Sales team since 2007 and a driving force in the networks consistent year-over-year ad revenue gains. Frank Vittori has been promoted to Vice President, Post Production. Vittori has played a key role in the company’s in-house production unit, with oversight of hours of original content and on-air promotional spots. In the company’s corporate relations division, Jessica Yas Barker has been promoted to Senior Director. Barker continues to oversee the company’s arts advocacy efforts, including its burgeoning Stand for the Arts initiative.
Ovation has also added Maritza Berta as Marketing Manager. Berta reports to David Wideroe, SVP of Marketing, and is based in the Los Angeles office. Berta comes to Ovation from Sony’s Crackle streaming service, where she created innovative digital media solutions and custom marketing programs. At Ovation, Berta will be focused on marketing initiatives around the linear and digital premieres of such network tentpole programs as Versailles, The Wine Show and the debut of Riviera starring Julia Stiles early next year. She will also play an integral marketing role in supporting the roll out of JOURNY on additional technology platforms and OTT service aggregators.
“Ovation continues to be an agile independent network that has been able to adapt and respond to the changing media landscape. Our staying power and success has been a result of the outstanding team we have in place. I’m delighted to announce these promotions and our new marketing manager and look forward to seeing the next phase of the company’s evolution unfold. These are exciting times for Ovation, and we are poised to take advantage of the multitude of opportunities available today,” said Gilligan.
[1] JOURNY is #1 Travel app on Roku as of 8/14/18